Arnold Hara, Entomologist

University of Hawaii at Manoa

College of Tropical Agriculture & Human Resources

Hilo, Hawaii arnold@hawaii.edu

Little Fire Ant 2014 Learning Conference

Hawaii Pest Control Association Hawaii Prince Hotel

September 12, 2014

PALM TREE

TRUNK

Frond base

Cryptic Multiple queens

What will this presentation cover?

-Most Attractive Survey Bait – Peanut Butter

-Time of Day to Survey for LFA

-Contact Insecticides (bifenthrin, fipronil)

-Effectiveness of RIFA Bait Insecticides

-Effectiveness of Weathered Bait Insecticides

-Soapy Water Dip

-Hot Water Dip

-Drone Technology to Apply Baits

Little Fire Ant

*Most attractive is peanut butter.

*Hot dog and Spam are also attractive.

Photos by

W. Nagamine

How Would I Find LFA? What would I look for?

o The best time to survey for LFA is in early morning or late

afternoon when they are most actively foraging.

o Avoid hot sunny days and mid-day (if you must survey, find

shady areas). Will not forage during heavy rainfall.

o LFA prefer fats not liquid/gel sugar. Smear peanut butter on a

stake (plastic/wood) or in vial to detect LFA (bright paint on the

stake or vial to easily find them). Hot dogs or spam in a vial

works but not as selective to LFA. o Red-orange, slow-moving, and less than 1/16” long.

2 grooves

Two-segmented antennal clubs

long, pointy spines

2 nodes

Knock-down (direct spray) and Residual Activity of

Fipronil (Termidor), and Chlorfenapyr (Phantom)

against Little Fire Ant

1) Termidor SC 0.06%

2) Phantom SC 0.50%

3) Phantom SC 0.50% and Silwet L-77 0.25%

4) water (control)

Treatments:

Knockdown:

-Spray (5 ml) directly on 100 workers on filter paper in

400 cc plastic container.

-Mortality observed at 0.5, 2, 4, 6, 8 and 24 h.

Residual:

-Treatments applied to filter paper and aged

7 days under greenhouse conditions under overhead

irrigation (1.0 fl oz per day).

-Mortality observed at 2-3 day intervals to 21 DAT.

Filter paper impregnated with insecticides were placed on the perforated plastic lids.

Treated filters exposed to indirect sunlight in greenhouse under an overhead irrigation system (1 fl oz oer day) for 7 days.

Residual Trial with Contact Insecitcides

* 4 HAT >98% with Phantom .

*24 HAT 100% with Termidor.

*By regression, 95% mortality predicted at 14h w/Termidor.

Direct Spray of Termidor and Phantom on Little Fire Ant

*Phantom- 3 days after exposure (DAE) – 100% mortality.

*Termidor - No significant mortality up to 17 DAE.

*Termidor- 100% mortality at 21 DAE.

*Demonstrates slow-activity of fipronil for horizontal transfer.

Residual Activity of 7-day aged deposit of

Termidor and Phantom

Live Ants within Pots Following

Drench Treatment

0

200

400

600

800

1000

Nu

mb

er

Ortho Max Talstar Flowable Untreated

3 days 1 month 2 months

1.5 oz per gal 0.8 oz per gal

Treatments Commonly Used to Control LFA in Urban,

Landscape, Nursery and Food Crop Sites Granular – Most of the Red Imported Fire Ant (RIFA)

Baits baits (soybean oil on corn grit) are effective:

*Amdro, Probait, Maxforce Complete (hydramethylnon,

metabolic inhibitor)

*Siesta (metaflumizone, sodium channel inhibitor )

Extinguish Plus (hydramethlnon & methoprene, insect

growth regulator (IGR)

Distance, Esteem (food label) (pyriproxyfen, IGR)

Advion (indoxacarb, sodium channel inhibitor)

*Most attractive

Limiting effectiveness of granular baits in tropical environment is

moisture/rain, causing rancid and moldy ineffective baits.

IGR Gel – Methoprene (IGR, Tango) with vegetable or corn

Bait oil, peanut butter and xanthan gum (food label).

(Vanderwoude 2012, http://littlefireants.com/)

Active Ingredients:

1.00% Hydramethylnon, similar AI to Amdro & Probait

Mode of Action: metabolic inhibitor

Maxforce Complete granules contain a bait matrix

combining sugars, proteins (including silk worm

pupae), fats and oils, which accommodate insects'

changing nutritional needs.

Maxforce® Complete Brand Granular Insect Bait is a ready-to-

use product for use indoors and outdoors and around buildings,

on lawn, and other non-crop areas: (including school yards,

playgrounds, golf courses, and ornamental nurseries).

Ants (Acrobat, Argentine, Big Headed, Carpenter, Cornfield,

Field, imported and native Fire, Ghost, Harvester, Odorous

House, Pavement, Pharaoh, Thief)

Little Fire Ant 1 Hour after placement

2 Hours after placement

Control (Peanut Butter) Probait Maxforce Complete >

Probait Maxforce Complete Control (Peanut Butter)

Peanut butter Probait (hydramethylnon 0.73%)

Attractiveness to peanut butter, Probait, Extinguish Plus & Professional to LFA

Extinguish Professional

Consistently was not

attractive to LFA possibly

due to the repellency of

the higher concentration

of methoprene.

Extinguish Plus

(hydramethylnon 0.36%

methoprene 0.25% )

Peanut butter, Probait,

Extinguish Plus were

Highly attractive to

LFA within two hours

of exposure to these

baits.

Extinguish

Professional

(methoprene 0.50 %)

Nest Activity 7 WAT

Untreated Extinguish Plus

(0.365% hydramethylnon & 0.25% S-methoprene)

Little Fire Ant Control

High mortality in colony Control: Normal nest activity

Combat Source Kill Ant (fipronil 0.01%)

Amdro Kills Ants Stake (hydramethylnon 1.0%)

Peanut butter based products were highly attractive.

Gels or Liquids were not attractive

Control (peanut butter) Amdro (hydramethylnon 0.73%)

Grant’s Kills Ants Ant Control Gel

(hydramethylnon 1.0%)

PIC Liquid Ant Bait Killer(sodium tetraborate

pentahydrate 5.0%)

Raid Ant Gel Precision Placement Bait

(thiamethoxam 0.003%)

TomCat Ant Killer Gel Bait (indoxacarb 0.03%)

Weathered Bait Insecticides *Baits were weathered on a wire screen (1x1 mm mesh) in a 34.3 L x

34.3 W x 7.6 H cm (1,176.5 cm2) wooden box containing potting

media (layer of peat moss, perlite, and vermiculite mix) in a

greenhouse with 60% shade cloth and subjected to 2.3 cm rainfall per

day via overhead irrigation.

*Extinguish Plus, Maxforce Complete and Probait were weathered for

7-8 days and 14 days.

*Fresh deposits, 7-8 day and 14 day weathered baits of each bait were

compared to an unweathered control baits.

peat moss,

perlite,

vermiculite

mix

Bait insecticide

on wire screen

25cc

7 DE Probait (hydramethylnon 0.73%) 14 DE Probait (hydramethylnon 0.73%)

Control (peanut butter) Probait (hydramethylnon 0.73%)

Fresh Versus

Weathered Probait

Completely moldy at 7 DE

Control (peanut butter)

8 DE Extinguish Plus (hydramethylnon 0.365%, S-methoprene 0.250%)

Extinguish Plus (hydramethylnon 0.365%, S-methoprene 0.250%)

14 DE Extinguish Plus (hydramethylnon 0.365%, S-methoprene 0.250%)

Fresh Versus

Weathered Extinguish

Plus

Ants attracted to 7 & 14 DE

with less mold

Fresh Siesta Amdro Pro

7 DE Siesta 14 DE Siesta

*Metaflumizone (SIesta, Altrevin) corn grit baits

placed on a wire screen

(1 x 1 mm mesh)

outdoors on a nursery

bench for 7 d ( rainfall-

6.7 cm) or 14 d (rainfall-

15.5 cm).

*Fresh and weathered

baits exposed to LFA

colonies with >100

workers, at least one

queen, and a small

portion of brood housed

in a plastic container

(20W x 34L x 11cm)

Weathered Metaflumizone Corn Grit Bait Against LFA

0

20

40

60

80

100

0 3 6 9 12 15 18 21

Days after treatment

ControlSiesta 14 DESiesta 7 DESiesta FreshAmdro Fresh

Mortality, %

Fresh and Weather Bait Insecticides Against LFA

Summary of Baits against LFA Peanut butter is the most attractive substance

to workers.

Among the home owner ant baits, the peanut butter based baits including Hot Shot Max Attrax Ant Bait2, Raid Ant Bait III, Raid Double Control Ant Baits II were most attractive to LFA.

LFA were not attracted to any gel/liquid baits.

Siesta & Extinguish Plus maintained higher residual attraction after exposure to rain and sunlight than Maxforce Complete or Probait.

Soaps and Detergents Against Little Fire Ants *Breaks surface tension of water and their oily cuticle.

*Used for mosquito larvae control in vase water at graveyards.

*Initial trials indicate that ¼ tsp dish washing detergent per gal

of water for 15 min with agitation results in 100% mortality.

Before Dishing Detergent After Dishing Detergent

“Rafting and live LFA” “LFA Drowns in water”

7 DAT

live dead total % Mortality

(1 min) 29.75 120.75 153.00 78.9

(5 min) 0.00 80.20 80.20 100.0

(10 min) 0.60 69.20 69.80 99.1

0.00

20.00

40.00

60.00

80.00

100.00

120.00

140.00

(1 min) (5 min) (10 min)

Ave

rage

LFA

Co

un

ts

Soapy Water Dip Agaisnt LFA

live

dead

¼ teaspoon (1.25 ml. 0.033%) of liquid dishwashing detergent per gallon

Hot Water Against

Little Fire Ant

*Workers of LFA was effectively killed at 113 F for 10 min.

*Test conducted at a nursery on potted palms drenched at 114 F for 11 min.

*A tank-less gas water heater and pump provided the hot water drench.

Hot water dip tank Screened dish with with over 300 ants

Hot Water Drench Against Little Fire Ant

Effectiveness *Effectiveness evaluated by peanut butter baiting on days 2, 5 & 9 and

final pot removal and visual inspection on day 14.

*Peanut butter baiting attracted no ants at 2, 5 and 9 days, while over 450

ants were attracted to the untreated plants.

*Ant numbers in HW treatments were reduced by 99.3 and 89.3% in rhapis

and fishtail, respectively.

Peanut butter baiting Final visual inspection

DJI Phantom 2 Quadcopter

$869

*Amdro, Extinguish Plus labels

allow aerial equipment application.

*FAA allows drones below 300 ft and

one mile away from airports.

*Commercial application for hire is

regulated, but personal use is not.

Chute with radio/servo

remote control door

Balsa wood

Designed and built by Chiefy Gomes and Kyle Onuma

Aerial application of Amdro on string with peanut butter onto trees with drone.

AR.Drone 2.0 Parrot $299

Desgined and built by Charles Nelson

08 Feb 14

THANK YOU! Research Support Staff:

Susan Cabral

Jade Miyashiro

Ruth Niino-DuPonte

Kyle Onuma

Jorden Zarders Funding: USDA, Farm Bill

USDA, APHIS

Hawaii Dept. of Agriculture

County of Hawaii

Coordinated Group on Alien Pest Species

Agrochemical Industry

Collaborators: Hawaii Ant Lab (Cas Vanderwoude)

USDA, APHIS

Hawaii Dept. of Agriculture